Carolina headed to Ozarks
During the SEC Indoor Championships, seniors make a final stamp on their collegiate careers, and unknown faces make a name for themselves.
USC is looking for some of the latter this weekend as it heads to Fayetteville, Ark., particularly on the men's side. Duplicating the success the Gamecocks had at last year's championships, where they finished fourth overall, will be difficult due to the departure of hurdler Johnny Dutch.
"One year of doing well gets you kind of accustomed to doing well," coach Curtis Frye said. "The freshmen are thinking they're going to replace Johnny Dutch, [thinking] 'I'm hoping the step up and become Johnny Dutch immediately.'"
In order to replace the points earned by Dutch, Frye is looking to his seniors to step up.
"We all know freshmen are going to be freshmen," Frye said. "Our points have to come from our seniors. They've got to be the guys [who] come through. The top half of this conference is tough to get through, but our goal is to try to be in the top six,"
Senior throwers Mike Zajac and Matt Shuler have had impressive outings so far this season.
"Without them we would be a very thin team," Frye said. "Those guys have to come through and have to rise to the occasion. Both of those are past scorers in the conference."
Senior sprinter Lakya Brookins will be looking to defend her title in the women's 60-meter dash. If she repeats, she will become the first woman in NCAA history to capture back-to-back 60-meter crowns.
"That's a difficult and daunting task. I don't know if I want to make Lakya aware of it because when you try hard, that's when things don't quite happen," Frye said. "She's capable. She's defeated everyone in the country."
Frye thinks his women's squad has the potential to emulate the type of success the men's team had a year ago.
"Our women's team is a little bit like our men's team was last year," Frye said. "I don't know if they can achieve at level of being No. 8 in the country or a top-three [team] in the SEC, but [they've] got potential to get there."